You are here

King declines to meet prostitute

May 13, 2012

Politico -- by Seung Min Kim

Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) revealed Sunday that Dania Londono Suarez -- the Colombian woman at the heart of the Secret Service prostitution scandal -- had requested a meeting with the powerful congressman in his office.

However, he's turning her down.

"While such a meeting -- and the inevitable circus atmosphere surrounding it -- would no doubt be of great interest to the media covering this story, a meeting with her is simply not necessary at this time for the committee to conduct a serious and thorough investigation," said King, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, said in a statement Sunday.

King has been leading one of the several congressional investigations into the misconduct that reportedly occurred in Cartagena, Colombia, ahead of President Barack Obama's visit there last month.

In his statement, King did not specify why Suarez wanted to meet with him. Her attorney reached out to the House Homeland Security Committee late Thursday requesting a meeting, King said.

Secret Service investigators had initially been unable to track down Suarez, who had instead popped up in the media giving lengthy interviews about her role in the scandal. But she has since been interviewed by Secret Service investigators at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid.

"During her interview with the Secret Service, Ms. Suarez acknowledged that at no time did she have access to any sensitive information whatsoever and had no idea that she had been involved with a Secret Service agent," King said Sunday.